September 26, 2013

The Volkswagen Group and its joint-venture FAW-Volkswagen inaugurated the new vehicle production plant in Foshan, Southern China. In just under two years, the Group has constructed a highly-advanced, resource-efficient car manufacturing facility at the new location in Guangdong province. First-stage production capacity is 300,000 vehicles per year. It is planned to double capacity in the medium term. The first vehicle to leave the assembly line in Foshan is a seventh-generation Volkswagen Golf.

"Volkswagen in China stands for both green mobility and sustainable growth. Our new plant in Foshan combines state-of-the-art technology with particularly efficient resource management," said Prof. Dr. Jochem Heizmann, Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG and President and CEO of Volkswagen Group China. "This new plant creates 6,500 skilled jobs and will systematically foster new talent. We are thus laying the foundations for an innovative and sustainable automotive industry in Southern China."

The Foshan facility was the first car factory in China to receive a Triple-Star Green Building Award, the highest state award available for environmentally compatible factory design. 100 per cent of the plant's waste water is treated and reused, almost 90 per cent of the waste and packaging material from the production process is recycled. Like all Volkswagen plants in China, Foshan has been certified to the ISO 14001 standard. The new factory ranks as one of the most environmentally-friendly car manufacturing plants in China.

First-stage production capacity at the FAW-Volkswagen plant is 300,000 vehicles per year. Production began today with the Volkswagen Golf. The Audi A3 will also be built in Foshan from the end of 2013. The Foshan plant is the first production facility in China based on the modular transverse toolkit (MQB) and can simultaneously build Volkswagen and Audi models. It is planned to double capacity at the plant in the medium term.